Jewish Theology

God has a personal name


God is also transcendent




Involved in the welfare of
humans and all created world
Beyond this world
All knowing
Infinitely powerful
God is believed to be the one
and only God

Shema
 It means Hear
 Declares the uniqueness of
God



“Hear, O Israel! The Lord is
our God, the Lord alone”
Deuteronomy 6:4
Can be compared to the
Our Father for Christians
It is recited at least twice
daily

In morning and evening
prayers
TaNakh



God’s revelation of the divine will
to the Chosen People is recorded
in the Hebrew Bible.
The Hebrew bible is Judaism
sacred scripture
Hebrew Bible contains 3 parts:
1.
2.
3.



Torah
Prophets
Writings
In Hebrew, these words begin
with the letters T, N, and k
referred as Tanakh
Hebrew Bible same as Tanakh
The contents of the Hebrew Bible
are also found in the Christian OT

But the books are named and
ordered differently
Torah




Means instruction
Translated as “the law” as well
Refers to the will of God as
revealed to humankind
Refers to the first five books of
the Bible

Revealed directly to Moses
by God
Torah cont.

Aka the Pentateuch
 Meaning 5 books

The Torah contains the law
 10 Commandments
Other 613 laws
 What Jews are expected to
do
Every synagogue contains a scroll
of the entire Torah
 Kept in a vessel called an ark


Oral Torah

The bible or written Torah is
complemented by religious
teachings of the “oral Torah”
 Oral Torah refers to the
material taught and
transmitted by Judaism’s
great rabbis of antiquity.


These teachings were
eventually written down
Oral Torah is the
interpretation/explanation of
the written Torah
Mishnah




The Mishnah is one form
of Oral Torah
It means repetition
It contains teachings that
were formulated and
transmitted orally by
rabbis
 Rabbis are teachers of
Torah or leader of
Jewish worship
Most important text of
the Oral Torah
Talmud




It means study
It is based on the Mishnah
Small portions of the Mishnah are
cited usually page after page
It presents a grand scheme of
interpretation of God’s will, blending
together the oral and written forms
of Torah (Torah and Mishnah)
TALMUD IN THE MAKING EXERCISE
The History of the Chosen People



Descendents of Israelites (aka Hebrews)
Around the time of the exile and following it, they
became known as Jews, and their religion became known
as Judaism, because their country was Judah
Founders: Abraham and Sarah
Judaism through the years
3 eras wk:
1. Classical
2. Medieval
3. Modern
Classical Judaism







End of first century – seventh century
The destruction of the second temple
The Jews of the classical lived under the threat of Roman
political oppression, which sometimes had violent
consequences.
The Romans issued a decree forbidding Jews to inhabit the
region of Palestine.
In the fourth century, Christianity arose to become the
official religion of the roman empire
A few centuries later, many Jews found themselves living
under Muslim rule.
During this period, a majority of Jews lived in the Diaspora.
 Diaspora is aka Dispersion- it refers to the Jews living
outside their homeland
Medieval Judaism



This period spans from the 8th century
to the middle of the 18th century
Primarily under Muslim control and free
to worship
 In some areas Jews were forced to pay
taxes
 Jews established a large middle class
Christian control
 European Areas
 Jews became successful money
lenders
 Brought about resentment and
persecution
 Sons of crucifiers
 Intentionally rejected Christ
Medieval Judaism: Philosophy and mysticism



Moses Maimonides represents a great
number of Jewish philosophers, teachers,
and scriptural masters who contributed to
the ongoing process of interpreting Torah.
Moses applied the philosophy of Plato and
Aristotle to the biblical tradition
He contributed Judaism’s most famous
statement of beliefs
1.

Jewish mysticism or Kabbalah teaches that
God can best be known with the heart,
through love.



The belief in God’s existence
God can be found by looking inward
The Zohar is the most famous text of
Jewish mysticism
Kabbalists observe the commandments of
the Torah
Modern Judaism

18th Century- the period of the Enlightenment (or age of
reason)
 Filled with great change
 Out with the Monarchies/ In with rule by the people
 Hasidism arose during this period.
 Hasidism means pious
 It draws from some of the mystical teachings of the
kabbalist tradition
 It emphasizes personal relationships with God and the
community, rather than study of the Torah and strict
observance of its commandments.
 The center of each Hasidic community is the leadership
of the zaddik, a holy man who is believed to have an
especially close relationship with God
Modern Judaism cont.

Zionism




Arose in late 19th century
Committed to the reestablishment of a Jewish
homeland (Zion biblical for
Jerusalem)
Zionism refers generally to the
support of Israel
Feel that the only way to ensure
the safety of the Jewish people is
to have its own state.
Modern Judaism cont.



Throughout the centuries Jews faced
persecution- known as anti-Semitism
The Holocaust is an event/example of antiSemitism
Holocaust






Hebrew for “mass destruction”
Persecution of the Jews by German Nazis from
1933-1945
Lives lost:
 An estimated 6 million Jews
Many Jews looked at the holocaust as
punishment for wrong doings.
Another response, such as the Zionist- was to
support the State of Israel.
Israel was granted statehood in 1948
 An area that is always in turmoil because the
Palestinians (Islam) also claim the area to be
sacred